In the world's worst airport. Last October The Guide to Sleeping In Airports listed the NAIA Terminal 1 at the top of the list as the world's worst airport. Now, CNN GO included as one of the world's 10 most hated airports. The last time that Terminal 1 was rehabilitated was in 1981, imagine how long it has been since it had a touch up?
I wonder where they are taking the ridiculous travel tax and terminal fees? Each passenger have to pay about Php1,500 for travel tax and Php750 terminal fee. Imagine around Php2,500 for each 27 million passengers that traveled in 2010 and yet the service and facilities were a throw-out! The fees really have to go. The front desk officers are rude, things miraculously get 'lost', the toilets are filthy! You even have to use an improvised pail to flush the toilet! Urgh!! No decent chairs for you to relax while waiting for your flight. The concessions are very few. The airport officers are of no help even. You thought you're being helped by giving you a push cart and pushing it for you, only to find out that there's a fee. So, embarrassing! And the corruption is even worse at the Customs.
I don't remember ever paying a fee or whatever in other countries. Here in SG, if you are holding a long term pass, you don't have to line up at the immigration desk. The immigration desks are mostly for visiting foreigners. But, if you have a pass, all you have to do is flash your ID at the scanner, when the first door opens, you put your thumb at the biometric scanner, the second door opens and walah! You're out in a breeze!
Wait, I am not done yet. I also often fetch our parents whenever they come home from Riyadh. The waiting area outside the terminal would make you feel really pathetic. It is so hot and the only thing that comforts you is that there's a roof and few chairs which some are even dilapidated. When the passengers arrive, looking for them would make you feel dizzy because there are no more big bold letters where they could line up based on their surnames. So what we do is we get away with the guards to run towards the terminal so we'll be able to immediately see our parents.
After media hullabaloo, the government is, finally, looking into the rehabilitation and renovation of NAIA Terminal 1 and will be giving a Php1 billion budget by January 2012. Kevin Cobonpue, Budji Layug and Royal Pineda have done the pro-bono design which have been approved by the NAIA Board and DOTC Chair Manuel Roxas.
I don't remember ever paying a fee or whatever in other countries. Here in SG, if you are holding a long term pass, you don't have to line up at the immigration desk. The immigration desks are mostly for visiting foreigners. But, if you have a pass, all you have to do is flash your ID at the scanner, when the first door opens, you put your thumb at the biometric scanner, the second door opens and walah! You're out in a breeze!
Wait, I am not done yet. I also often fetch our parents whenever they come home from Riyadh. The waiting area outside the terminal would make you feel really pathetic. It is so hot and the only thing that comforts you is that there's a roof and few chairs which some are even dilapidated. When the passengers arrive, looking for them would make you feel dizzy because there are no more big bold letters where they could line up based on their surnames. So what we do is we get away with the guards to run towards the terminal so we'll be able to immediately see our parents.
After media hullabaloo, the government is, finally, looking into the rehabilitation and renovation of NAIA Terminal 1 and will be giving a Php1 billion budget by January 2012. Kevin Cobonpue, Budji Layug and Royal Pineda have done the pro-bono design which have been approved by the NAIA Board and DOTC Chair Manuel Roxas.
I really hope that this is the start of taking these issues seriously. We have been wanting to promote tourism in the Philippines but when the start and end of your travel is an airport-rage, you would think gazillion times to ever coming back. Because, honestly not all travelers are backpackers who find it exciting and adventurous to survive in a fist fight mode in the airport. It would also be great if the renovation would also include an easy access to the public transportation aside from taxi cabs. Which reminds me, these cabs charges so high that would pull your wits out if you aren't smart enough to ask first how much it would cost you to get to your destination. Hope they would get rid of corrupt and bribing employees and officers. Provide free wireless service in all areas, please, we are now in the 20th Century. Connect the three terminals via a tram or whatever means so it would be easier to transfer from one terminal to another in case you went to a wrong terminal by mistake.
Finally, let this improvement start as soon as possible and finish without delays. Manual V. Pangilinan of First Pacific Co. have expressed interest in bidding for the privatization of the airport. If this will make things better so be it but the netizens will be waiting.
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